Mormons, Mormons Everywhere

I was at work on yesterday, putting go-backs away, when a customer stopped me to ask a question. I was happy to oblige. I couldn't tell you what she originally wanted, but I lifted my right hand up to scratch my chin as I thought about the location of her desired items. And she cut me off. She said, "is that a CTR ring?!" Indeed, it was a CTR ring on my right hand. And we started talking about what wards we each respectively go to. Our wards actually meet in the same building! She goes to the Northridge family ward! And she asked me to tell her my conversion story, so I gave her the short version. We had a nice little chat for over ten minutes. She's a sweet lady! I'm glad I met her! I'll probably see her around the building in passing.

I love this Church. There are members from all walks of life and all over the world. I love that the Church is the same no matter where you attend. It's a safe place to get away from the world. It's a place of spiritual refuge. The Spirit is felt the same in every church building. I'm grateful that Heavenly Father truly guided this church, and that He is at the Helm of that "old ship Zion." I would be so lost without His direction; I know I have been before.

David, one of my mom's exes who has grown to be like a father-figure to me, keeps trying to convince me to move to Utah. He says I'll love it (because of all the Mormons there. haha! As if there aren't any here! We're everywhere!). And I'm sure I would. When I went to the Ogden temple open house, I definitely fell in love with the scenery I saw along the way. And Utah just has a different aura than the other states I've seen. It doesn't seem, I hope some people don't take this the wrong way, as "worldly" as other places. I think it's kind of cool. But I just get this feeling, and I could be very wrong, that the leaders of the Church don't want all non-Utah Mormons to be flooding to Utah. I feel like rather than have the world think that Utah is the "Mormon state," they'd prefer to make the "Mormon presence" stronger throughout the world. I think they would rather have us stay put, and help "build the kingdom" where we are now. But I could be wrong. And I'm not completely against the idea of moving there; I'm just not sure I'm ready for it now. Only time will tell. :)

Open the Door

Just to set the record straight, this actually happened last week, December 7th to the 11th. I've been meaning to post about it for days, but I just hadn't gotten around to it. 

Yeah, so, last Sunday it hit me that right around this time last year was when the Elders knocked on my door. I've mentioned a few times throughout my blogposts that I had no desire to hear from them. While I prayed for guidance prior to meeting them, I wasn't sure I was ready or willing to make the changes that I knew faith required of me. So, when I saw them through the blinds, I rolled my eyes, and almost didn't even open the door. But I was raised better than that, so I decided to be polite, and just hear them out. Something prompted me to let them in, and, as "they" say, the rest is history. 

Last Sunday, when I realized that a whole year had passed, I felt the urge to share my testimony. I wasn't aware of this, but Elder Sharp was in the foyer at the time, and was able to hear it. Later, he told me he was grateful to have heard it and to have played a part in my conversion, if only a small part. 

After the three-hour blocks, we had our Break-The-Fast ward luncheon thing. One the Sisters' new investigators was there. His name is Andres, he's really nice. He seems like a solid investigator! I have a good feeling about this one, but then, what do I know? Haha I'm just a convert!

Anyway, after Break the Fast, Gilbert and I hung out at the church for a bit. He wanted help preparing for his seminary lesson. And I had a feeling I should stay and help him. 

A short while later, we heard a knock on the door. I think neither of us felt like answering, but then I heard another knock. So, I went to answer it, and there was this young guy there who said he ha to do a project for his class on a religion and was curious in the "Mormon Church." My first instinct was to refer him to the missionaries, and that's only because I don't known enough to be giving out information like that. I've finished the Book of Mormon, and I have a testimony of it, and Joseph Smith, and the Church, but I don't think that is what he was looking for. I went to go get Gilbert for help. The guy introduced himself as Travis, and told us that he was "an adult now," and he figured it was time for him to find a religion. He also mentioned that his mom was Mormon at one point before converting to Catholicism. So, we gave him a tour of the building; Gilbert gave him a mini-lesson on the Plan of Salvation, and we started telling him other aspects of the Church, some of which are not the best to mention the first time around. :\ that was mostly my fault, but then again, I was nervous. After a while, it startet to seem like his interest was caused less by his project and more by actual curiosity. And he had stuck around for so long, too. It seemed like he might be an actually investigator. He exchanged numbers with Gilbert, and asked to be invited to our church services and activites. He took the Sisters' number. The whole thing was incredible! I totally was not expecting it (I'll finish this story in a bit. I like to tell things in chronological order).

After that, Gilbert and I rushed to the stake center for the Rebroadcast of the Christmas Devotional. Mostly missionaries were there. So, we told the Sisternaries about it, and they were so excited! I told Sister Bishop that I was kind of funny that a year after I opened the door the Elders even though I kinda of didn't want to, I open a door at church (even though I kind of didn't feel like getting up) to a guy who might become an investigator! So, Sister Bishop was like, "That's it! Now you always have to open the door!" Haha! It made me think about taking the opportunities that are given to us! 

And I saw both Elder Sharp and Elder Hansen, so we had to get a picture to commemorate the anniversary of meeting them! 

Monday night, for FHE, the ward went up to Santa Clarita to this little neighborhood that goes all out with the lights. They call it "Wakefield Wonderland." It was really pretty! And then I unexpectedly ran into Sister Hacker! It was pretty funny. We looked at each other for half a second before recognizing each other, and then I totally screamed in excitement. Literally, like a little girl! I have never been that type of girl before, but now I'm screaming of joy all the time! It started when I joined the church. Haha what is also funny is that on the way there I was kind of hoping I would either run into her or Sister Olsen. Around the time I ran into Sister Hacker, some of the ward ran into Sister Olsen. I only saw her sticking out of the truck she was in as she was heading out. She was yelling, yeah, she's a funny gal. Haha. 

The Sisternaries invited me to teach Travis last Tuesday, and also last Thursday. On Tuesday, it still seemed like it was just for the project. But the Spirit was so strong on Thursday. I was sure he was genuinely interested. Besides, his project was due Wednesday. If he was only interested in the church for his project, I don't think he would've bothered meeting them again after it was due. Unfortunately, he didn't end up going to church this past Sunday. And he probably isn't interested anymore, if he ever was at all. And it's disappointing the way it turned out, but at least he "opened the door" enough to have an opinion on our Church. And that's all we're really asking of people, to pray and ponder whether this gospel is right for them. Only God knows if he actually prayed about it. But whatever happened, much like Elder Sharp, I'm grateful to have played a part in his short investigation. :)

Apostles: Living Witnesses of Jesus Christ

Today was totally awesome! And also kind of sad. We had our ward Christmas program, and it was pretty good. I could tell they all put a lot of thought and hard work into it. I was blown away by some of the performances, and some of the testimonies.
But it was also Sister Bishop's last Sunday on her mission. She goes home Wednesday. I could feel myself trying to avoid her as soon as I pulled in to the church parking lot. It's kind of a habit of mine; I distance myself from people whom I know are leaving (or I'll leave), and I'm going to miss. I guess in my mind, I justify this with the thought I won't miss them as much, but that is seldom the case. I miss people pretty bad regardless.

After the sacrament meeting, we had desserts as a ward. And, no surprise here, Bishop Patton asked us all to sing Hymn 152, "God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again." At this point, we had better just memorize the song because it has become quite evident that we will be singing it to anyone he gets attached to in the ward. Haha. He's a great Bishop. But I could barely make it through the song. My eyes started tearing up. Sometimes I don't realize how much of an impact someone has had on me until the very last moment. I'm gonna miss her.
And the Yangs. Brother Yang just got called to be the Bishop of the Tarzana family ward! So, we sang Hymn 152 not only to Sister Bishop, but to them as well. Sister Yang is one of my favorite people, and I know I'll see her around every now and then, but I'm going to miss her still. Brother Yang, well, I don't know him very well. He's a quite man, but when he does talk, he's a funny guy. I wish I had gotten to know him a little better.

Anyway, I went home for about an hour.

Then I went to the Spanish stake center in Van Nuys. Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve was there to give a fireside to the youth of the Church. Us, YSA, were later invited to come. It was good. I learned a lot from him. But I was excited to see another side of him. I've only ever seen him during conference talks, and I felt like I didn't know much about him. Bu through the firseide, I was able to do that, and now I see him for what he is: a man, with imperfections and flaws like the rest of us, but a man called of God, a man who is a living witness of Christ. A man who has been called to lead and edify us, and I can testify that he did just that. My outlook on the man has changed immensely. I'm grateful for the opportunity we were given there. I'm grateful that we were invited, and that I was able to learn from and of him, and that I got to shake his hand! What a sweet man he is, and his wife is, as well.

After that fireside, Gilbert and I, in separate cars, went to the Granada Hills stake center for the Stake sing along. We got there at the same time, and it had just started. There was a pretty good turn-out. Both pairs of the Northridge 1st missionaries were there, as was Elder Burgess, the guy who baptized my younger sister. I sat next to Sister Raty, and when Gilbert went to the bathroom, she asked me if we were together. Awkward! But she told me the only reason she thought that was because we had been together the week before as well when we came to the Christmas devotional. Haha. But I set her straight. We're just friends who just happened to spend the majority of two Sundays in a row together. He's like a brother, or a cousin, to me. I could never see him like that. But her comment made me laugh. Anyway, this program was my favorite thing! I'm usually not a fan of singing, but after the first non-sing-along performance, the whole congregation started clapping. I was so confused. Mormons usually don't clap at Church things. But this time, it was allowed! If I hadn't already met Elder Anderson, this probably would've made my week! I am a big fan of clapping when I approve of/like something! Sometimes, it is so hard to hold myself back at Church. But, for once, it was allowed. So, because I was so overjoyed about the clapping, I actually sang almost every sing-along song off the top of my lungs! It was a joyous occasion for me!

I Love to See the Temple

Last weekend, my ward and I drove from various points in the San Fernando valley to Arizona. We all left early Friday morning, and made it to Gilbert by the early afternoon. We were there to see the temple. Some of us did temple baptisms, others did sealings and endowments.

It was so great to return to that temple. The last time I had been was during their open house just eight months ago. At the time, I was still an investigator. It was there during the open house where I realized I wanted to be baptized. To be there again, as a member, doing temple work for the members of my Bishop's family felt pretty amazing. It was a real honor to be one of the few who got to e baptized for and in the place of some of his and Sister Patton's family members. I love them both so much. They are like family to me. 

Then we all grabbed a bite to eat, and we all went to the Mesa temple. It is so pretty. Sadly, I didn't think to take any pictures. Haha. 

Then we went back to Gilbert, to stay there for the night with members of the Church who live there. The house I stayed in was pretty epic! 

Saturday morning, the people I stayed with fed the entire ward. Almost 15 of us, plus their own family, and the members who housed the rest of the ward. I will never get over how kind the members of the Church are. They are awesome!

After breakfast, we drove from Gilbert to Phoenix for the temple open house there. That temple is so beautiful! Gilbert is still my favorite, bar none, but the celestial room in the Phoenix temple is gorgeous. I'll have to make a return visit once I have received my endowments. 

I feel so blessed to be part of this ward. I've talked to members in other YSA wards in the area, and they haven't been able to take the temple trips we've taken. I'm grateful that my Bishop was able to make this all happen, that the Church was able to make this all happen. I honestly don't know if I would be a member right now if I hadn't gone on that temple trip in February. I would not have been able to see as many temples as I have in the time that I have without the ward trips. I feel truly blessed. 😊

Climbing Spiritual and Physical Mountains

So, today after I got home from a quick meeting I had to go to, I felt the urge to go hiking; it's a bit of a a rare "craving" for me. While I enjoy hiking and the outdoors, I'm also really lazy. But I thought to myself, "it's a beautiful day, and really, what are you going to do if you don't go hiking? Scroll through your Pinterest feed all day? No, go out, and enjoy the day."

I asked my sister if she wanted to go with me, but she said she had stuff to do. So, after I ate lunch, my dog, Lola, and I hit the road, and we headed towards O'Melveny Park in Granada Hills. I've heard a lot of great things about this park, but me, being lazy, have never been, though, I've had plenty of chances. Haha, One of the things I heard about this park is that there is a place that you can see both the Santa Clarita and San Fernando valleys. And I wanted to see it.

O'Melveny Park has an equestrian trail, and a nature trail, and various other trails that could be nameless. But don't quote me on that. Haha. Lola and I started on the nature trail; when we reached a fork in the road, I took the path less traveled. And we hiked way up the hill, but eventually we hit a did end. So we decided to go back down the hill. At this point Lola was so tired from that first hike, that I decided that we should take a break and catch our breath. We settled in this little grassy area.

Lola's got swag. 

If you walk along the fence, that is the horse trail, but I think that trail that's just behind the fence is called the Grotto Trail.

Lola got to play with another dog there for a while. The funny thing is she was exhausted, bu she kept playing. After the other dog left, and Lola caught her breath, she gave me this look like she was ready to go. So, I refilled her water bottle. Yes, she has her own. Haha. It's one of those that has a little bowl attached to it so she can drink from it. And then we were on our way, up the Grotto trail.

It was hard, but I was really determined to get to that viewpoint. We would climb up one hill, thinking the viewpoint would be there, only to see another, and sometimes, steeper hill. Every now and then, after a steep hill, we would take a break. But I found that after taking a break, it was a lot harder to find the drive or motivation to keep going. But I knew that the climb would be worth it once I saw that view. 

Stop 1: After climbing a pretty steep hill, Lola literally dragged me across from the other side of the trail to this tree for shade. :)

Lola enjoying the shade. 

The view from under the tree. 

It was kind of funny; every time we were climbing a steep section, I thought about some of the prophets in the scriptures, who used to climb to the tops of great mountains to talk with God. And while He didn't show himself to me, nor did I hear His voice, I knew I felt His presence through the Holy Spirit. I knew He was with me. 

Every time I reached the top of one hill, I would turn around and take in the view, and it was beautiful. I closed my eyes, and just tuned into the sounds of the nature around me. It was really great. But when I opened my eyes, I knew that this wasn't the view I came for. Not to say it wasn't good enough, but I still wanted a greater and grander view. 

So we pushed on, and kept climbing up the mountain.

Stop 2: After a steep, and slippery, section, Lola just threw herself on the ground.

Stop 3

Stop 3; different angle. 

Stop 3; another, different angle. 

 After this point, I was tempted to stop, and just go home. I almost felt satisfied. Then I noticed this path. I don't know why, but I was drawn to it.

Something about this path just spoke to me, so I had to investigate. 

 As soon as I was on it, I realized why I was drawn to it. On both sides of the path, all I saw was hills, and little flat areas, covered in dry grass. Sometimes I forget how beautiful the desert landscape can be. But what I loved most about it was that while you're on this path, for the most part, there is no sign of the city-life to the naked eye. It's like you're hundreds of miles away.

Lola and I continued on this somewhat secluded path, until we eventually came across a fence. It apparently belongs to a local gas company, or the city water supply. I, with my eyes, followed the fence to see where it led. That's when I noticed this tree on top of yet another hill, and a trail that led straight to it. At this point, I had already told Lola a couple of dozens of time that we were almost to the top, and I kid you not, she gave me this look that said "Yeah, I've heard that before," but this time, I really felt it!

Stop 4

Stop 4; different angle. 

Stop 4

Stop 4

When we finally reached that tree, I noticed there was a couple of trees. But one of them caught my eye, because there was this crate locked to it. 

Inside this crate, there are letters, and notebooks, and all kinds of stuff. Apparently, people who hike up here often, keep a record of their adventures. I thought that was pretty neat. 

We had, what I felt like was, the last uphill climb to the top. 

And it was the top! I was so excited! Getting up there was such a struggle, and with all of our breaks, it took us hours to get there. I honestly wanted to give up on multiple occasions, but I knew that what I'd get to experience from the top would make the climb all worth it! The view was glorious. 

The following are some spiritual thoughts that came to mind while I was hiking; forgive me if I repeat myself, or if I simply don't make any sense.

Getting to the top was my goal from the beginning. But there were distractions, and setbacks, and hiccups along the way, and it took me a while to get there.
As I was climbing up that mountain, I thought about how the top of the mountain was like the Celestial Kingdom. Our goal is to do everything we can do in this mortal life to get back to Heavenly Father in the eternal life.

Every time I took a break, it was that much harder to start up again, and keep going uphill. Every time, I was very tempted to turn around, and go back down the hill. Likewise, every sin I've committed makes it that much harder to keep living a gospel-centered life. It is easy to look at my mistakes and feel like I can't return from that point of despair. It is easy to feel guilty and to feel like I'll never be forgiven.But I can be forgiven. In fact, I have been. Jesus Christ has already suffered for me, for my mistakes, my sorrows, my burdens, everything. All I need to do is repent, and I can be wiped clean from that. But without repentance, I cannot move forward and upward. Without repentance, I would probably continue to sin,and it could lead to my own spiritual destruction. Repent, endure to the end, and eventually, I can reach the top of the mountain, and live with my Heavenly Father.

While I was climbing up steep hills, I thought about how hills are like the trials and blessings in our lives. It was so hard to climb the steep hills, but I kept my mind on what my goal was. I knew I wanted to get to the top. I kept that in perspective the majority of the time. There are times when I didn't. There are times where I lost desire to keep going. And while I was catching my breath, debating if I should turn around or keep going, I thought about gratitude. It is easy to be grateful during our times of abundances. But am I grateful for what I have when I don't have much? Am I grateful during my trials? Am I grateful for my trials? Am I grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow from my trials? Honestly, most of the time I am not; that is something I need to work on. But, as with hills, I can not enjoy the easy, enjoyable part of the trail of life without appreciating the hard part of the trail of life.

Going back to the path I was drawn to. . . Well, I guess every time I reached the top of one hill, and I turned to see the view of the valley, I was also worried about getting too far away from civilization because I was afraid of getting lost in the mountains. And when I found the path, and was able to look around and not see the city, I felt really great. In my mind, I related that path to the righteous path we must go on. The path led me to my destination, the viewpoint at the top of the mountain; just like the righteous path leads us to eternal glory. But we can only be on that path if we leave behind ways of the world. We must be in the world, but not of the world.

A similar thought I had was when I realized I had gotten high enough on the hill to see the cloud of  smog and pollution that looms over the valley. I honestly think that was when I had my first spiritual thought. When I thought about it, you don't usually notice the pollution when you're down there. It is only when you stand on high ground that you see how dirty the air really is. I related this to sin and immoral behavior. When you are around sin and immoral behavior, or when you participate in this behavior, you let your guard down. You become desensitized to it, and eventually, you don't even notice it. It is only when you stand on high moral ground that you can notice the sin around you. But we are not to judge or treat our fellow brothers and sisters, who are also children of God, for their behavior. We must love them as the Savior did.

Speaking of what the Savior would do, one of the lessons I learned while hiking was about "carrying" our brothers and sisters when they fall or need help. There were times were Lola was tired, and I was not tired. I could have kept going, but Lola needed to rest. I thought about how much faster I could have made it to my destination without her presence. But, then, I thought about how if she hadn't kept going, if she hadn't started taking those steps when I was ready to turn around, I never would've made it to my destination. While getting to the Celestial Kingdom is desirable, it is not a race, it is not an eternal finish line that we must all cross. The scriptures teach that "the worth of souls is great in the eyes of God (D&C 18:10);" one might say that the worth of every soul is great in His eyes. I believe He wants us all to return to Him. We must help ourselves get there, but we must also help others get there. Something as simple as a friendly hug, a thoughtful conversation, or a card in the mail makes a huge difference in the lives of those who need a friend but don't know how to turn to one. We must help our brothers and sisters in time of need. We must be like the Savior was. Every little act of kindness helps to soften the hearts of others. We need to do what we can to help others get there. They have their agency, and can choose to follow what path they may, but we must be diligent in being disciples of Christ to them, and being diligent in being their confidant.

Mission Peak

The Widower's Bench

This grove-type area at O'Melveny Park.

I really like their "fence."

Anyway, I just wanted to share my thoughts of the day.

You need to hear this! :D

I love country music. It is everything to me. It's all I listen to. These days, most of the top country songs are what people like to call "bro country," meaning that it's about trucks and drinking and partying and whatnot. And I like those songs. They're fun. But when it's all that country radio is playing, it starts to feel like it's not country anymore.

But every now and then, a great song like this makes it onto country radio. A song with a message, a song with heart, a song with Spirit, and it reminds me why I ever started loving country music in the first place.

Now, this one hit real close to home because I got baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints not too long ago. While I'm most certain that this was not the Church that the writers were talking about, the message stays the same. The Gospel changes lives. It changed mine. And it is so refreshing to hear a song that talks about those experiences on the radio.

I definitely felt the Spirit as I was listening to this song for the first time. I felt so overpowered with the Spirit that I was brought to tears. And now it's been stuck in my head for days. I only hope this song gets the exposure it deserves. It is too good not to be shared, just like this Gospel. :)

I just love these images!

I Spoke at Stake Conference (Conversion Story)

Sunday, September 14th, 2014

So, on the 7th, Bishop Patton reminded everyone during Relief Society that Stake Conference would be the following weekend. And he also announced that I would be speaking at Stake Conference, which was news to me. 
Apparently, the Stake leaders meant to ask me, but they never got around to it. But I agreed to do it nonetheless. :)
I was pretty nervous. The largest group of people I'd ever spoken in front of was my own ward, and there were at most fifty people there. At stake conference, there was probably over 200 people there. Saturday night, I was so worried about it, I hardly slept at all. I tossed and turned all night. And I was going to be the first speaker after all the opening business and sustainings and all that jazz! 
But I didn't have to do much to prepare because they only asked me to share my conversion story, which I apparently don't have written up all in one place. I guess it's spread out in pieces over many blog posts. My bad! Just as well! I, being the type of person to ramble on and on if I don't have a premeditated thought process, wrote out my conversion story for Stake Conference. And people say that you should be able to tell it off the top of your head, and I can, but I also had to speak for fifteen minutes, and I didn't think I'd be able to do that if I didn't prepare in advance. 

Here it goes: 

• When I heard I was going to be speaking today, two different thought processes ran through my mind. The first of which was panic. I’ve only given a talk before once, and funny enough, I actually volunteered to give that talk. And that walk was only in front of about 50 people, which is probably the largest group of people I’ve ever spoken in front of. So you can imagine how scary the thought of speaking in front of several hundred people at stake conference sounded to me. But the other thought I had was, “Wow. What an honor! I’ve only been a member about seven months, and I’m being asked to speak at stake conference?!” It blows my mind.
• Anyway, I just wanted to share my conversion story with y’all today. But before I get into how I joined the Church, I wanted to share some pieces of my life story with y’all. I know some people groan when they hear life stories from the pulpit, but I feel that there are essentials bits of my background that affected my conversion in one or another.
• I didn’t really grow up with a stable religious background. I went every now and then with my Catholic cousins for holiday mass. I sometimes went to a nondenominational church with my best friend and her family, until a tragedy struck their family, and their faith dissolved. In my own nuclear family, we seldom went to church. I can only remember going a handful of times. My father was, and still is, a raging alcoholic. In fact, I can’t even remember ever seeing him sober. But I’m sure he had his sober moments because those moments lead to our short visits to church. His sobriety never lasted long, therefore our church attendance wasn’t consistent. It didn’t take long to realize that my father didn’t take his faith seriously. So I kind of grew up thinking that religion was a joke. For the record, I did believe in God and Jesus Christ, but my faith was not whole-hearted. I never attempted to develop my faith and let it grow. And I’m sure this next bit of information has something to do with it, as well.
• When I was a child, I experienced a bit of a traumatic event. Because I was so young, and I wasn’t able to comprehend or process what had happened to me, I swept it under the carpet. And I tried to make myself forget about it. But when I was about 15, one small argument with my mom led to the explosion of that emotional powder keg. And I had a postponed reaction to that event, and used it as an excuse to do things that are inexcusable. A couple of months into my rebellious phase, I realized how much resentment I had towards the person responsible for that event, and others whom I thought had “done me wrong.” I realized I wanted to move on from all of that; I wanted to forgive those people, but even more so, I wanted to forgive myself for all the things I did in response to that event. From that point up until last year, I prayed constantly. I was always asking God for the ability to move on, the ability to forgive those, and the ability to forgive myself. I honestly never felt like anyone was listening to me, and I definitely didn’t feel like I was getting the answers to those prayers. Last fall, I felt like I had buried myself in a whole of regret and resentment. It was certainly my lowest point. I prayed again, but I wasn’t just praying for those three things I had always asked for. All of a sudden, I found myself praying for help, for guidance. I wanted to know how I could better live my life according to His will. I found myself having the desire to know Him better, and to attempt to develop that half-hearted faith.
• Recently, as I was reading in Alma 32, I realized that that desire made all the difference. By having that desire, I gave “place for a portion of [His] words;” meaning that I created room for a “seed [to] be planted in [my] heart (Alma 32:27-28).” And because I had “neglected the tree” over the years, because I had failed to nourish it, I could not “pluck of the fruit of the tree of life (Alma 32: 38-40).” That is, until I began to have that desire. I was finally humbling myself enough to want to find the truth in religion. I didn’t want to think that it was a joke anymore. And because of all of that, the Lord answered my prayers. I am convinced that He knew that my heart was willing to do what I needed to do, but my mind was not. He knew I wasn’t going to take myself to church. So He brought it to me.
• A short time after that prayer, a pair of Elders knocked on my door and asked if I was willing to hear a message about Jesus Christ. My mind said no, but I had the strongest feeling that I should say yes. So I invited them in, and, if I remember correctly, they taught me about the Restoration. I remember thinking how absurd it all sounded. But when they asked if they could come teach me again, I said yes. A few weeks later, they passed me off to the YSA sisters. The day I met them, they asked me if I would commit to being baptized, and I remember thinking, “Whoa! Slow your roll! I only just met you!” But I know that it was part of God’s plan to have them teach me, because they turned out to be some of my best friends.
• It was almost a month before I actually went to a sacrament meeting. And I honestly think it was my pride that got in the way. My mind was not willing to accept it yet. I’m the type of person that needs some kind of sign. I wasn’t asking for one, because I was still unsure if I really wanted one. I was still unsure I was really willing to commit to changing my ways.
• The ward invited me to go with them to the Gilbert, Arizona temple open house. The day before we left, the sisters had asked me to pray about something personal while inside the temple. On the drive over there, I was thinking a lot about whether I should get baptized. And they had asked me every time they taught me, but I’m a quitter by nature. So I never wanted to commit to it because I was honestly afraid that I would do it, and just walk away. On the way to Gilbert, I realized that there wasn’t any real reason to keep me from getting baptized. I knew that this felt different. This didn’t feel like something I was going to walk away from. There were still things that I didn’t understand about the Church, but I also knew that I had never felt the Spirit as strong as I had since I met the Elders.
• So I sent them a text message simply stating, “I think I’m ready.” And I didn’t specify, but they knew exactly what I was talking about. We were able to go through the open house twice. The first time, I completely forget to say that prayer because I was just so awestruck by how beautiful the building was.
• But the second time, I got to say that prayer in a stairwell, on the way to the Celestial room. And it was the same prayer I’ve made many times throughout the years. I finished it just as we were walking into the Celestial room. And I finally felt like I was free from the emotional burden from that traumatic event. I finally felt from the hurt, free from regret, free from the anger I had felt. It was all gone. I finally understood the Atonement. I finally understood the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for me, the sacrifice He made for all of us. And once I knew that, I realized I didn’t need to have all the answers, but I knew in my heart that the Church was true, that the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ had been restored. And I knew I wanted to be a member of the church that built the temple where I finally received my answer. I knew I wanted to be a member of the Church that helped to free me from my past.
• I know that our Heavenly Father loves us. He loves us so much, He gave up His only Son to suffer for our sins, our pains, our transgressions, our afflictions.  He loves us so much, He restored His Church through Joseph Smith, and because of that, we have access to the power of the priesthood, we are able to do things just as Jesus Christ and his Apostles did them. And we are able to receive modern day revelation from living prophets. I love this Church. I don’t know where I’d be right now without it; but now that it’s a part of my life, I don’t want to ever live without it. It means so much to me, and I’m so grateful that I was led to it, or that it was brought to me.
• And I say these things in the name of our Beloved Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen

Anyway, I had to continue to sit at the stand for the remainder of stake conference. I really had to go to the bathroom, and I couldn't get up and leave. That kind of sucked. But, the next couple of speakers: the Stake Relief Society President (or was it counselor), the California -  San Fernando Mission President's wife, then the mission president himself, the Stake Patriarch, and the Stake President; gave such incredible talks. I learned so much from them. 

And by the time we got to the closing prayer, I could barely hold it anymore. But the man who gave the closing prayer gave such a long one, I wanted to leave before it was over. Haha. 

And a lot of people came up to talk to me, and they told me they were grateful to have heard my testimony, that they learned from me. A few people told me that they had a few of their own prayers answered in my story. I find it so amazing that I didn't really plan on teaching anything with my talk. It was almost entirely just about my life. But people learned from it anyway. You never know what kind of influence you have on people. 

Which reminds me, you should totally watch the new Mormon Message "You Never Know." It is so good! I definitely shed a few tears. 

I don't know why I bother posting this stuff because I think I only have one or two readers, if any at all. But I feel the need to share. And while I may not see the results of any of this right now, I hope that, in the long run, it helps someone out in whatever way it can. 

Ogden Temple Trip!!

I honestly wasn't sure I was going to be able to go on this trip because I just started at my new job, and I wasn't able to ask for that many days off on such short notice. But by the grace of God, I "lucked" out and I was only scheduled on Saturday, the 16th, and on Monday, the 19th. But my sister was willing and able to cover for me on both of those days.

So, we left on Thursday from Bishop Patton's house, and we drove to Las Vegas. There, we stayed at the home of one of the Elders he served with in Sweden. He is the recorder at the Las Vegas temple, so he shared a few spiritual stories/experiences that others have shared with him. My favorite of which involved an elderly couple that is super devout, and goes to the temple every week. One week, they both got the impression that they should go serve a mission. So, they put in the paperwork, and said they were willing to serve anywhere except where it is cold. Sure enough, they got called to Anchorage, Alaska. One day, they had an appointment, but they had 45 minutes to kill; they didn't want to waste any time, so they decided to go tracting in the meantime. The very first door they knocked on, a young man answered. That young man happened to be their estranged son!! They reunited! 

I love stories like that!!

Friday morning, we drove to Las Vegas to St. George. We did temple baptisms there. It was so beautiful!

After that, we stopped to eat at Freddy's! Apparently, there's only two locations in the entire country!! It was pretty good!

Then we drove from wherever the Freddy's was, to Ogden. 

I have no idea what temple this is...

Or what temple this is...

Then, we finally got to the Ogden temple!! 

I tried to take a selfie with Gilbert, and I just looked like a creep. Hahaha!

Sister Kemp met up with us!! :)

The House that the girls stayed in, located in Eden, Utah. It is so huge!

Their neighborhood!

Girls' slumber party!

Us, on Saturday morning!

 Saturday morning, we went through the Ogden temple a second time. We had Farr Better Ice Cream as ward, and then everyone split up to do their own thing. My friend, McKenzie and I went to the Salt Lake Temple to do baptisms. We met up with others for lunch. Then everyone split up again. Gilbert, Mark, and I went to the Deseret Book Store, then we visited the visitors' centers, and then we took a tour at the Conference Center.

The Ogden Temple on Saturday morning!

GilBERT and Ernie!

This was at the South Visitors' Center!

The Salt Lake City Temple

 Sunday morning, we went to Music and the Spoken Word at the Conference Center, followed by Sacrament meeting at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. The whole ward walked around temple square for a bit; we went to the Tabernacle. Then everyone split up to start driving back to St. George, since we would be staying there for the night. Bishop Patton, Sister Patton, EmRod, and I went to Sister Olsen's house to drop off some stuff that she had left at the Pattons' house. Her parents are so sweet!

Music and the Spoken Word at the Conference Center

The ceiling in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building! 

Joseph Smith, in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building

Yay! Selfies!

"Papa" Olsen, one of their grand-kids, Bishop Patton, her brother, me, "Mama" Olsen, and EmRod. :) (I'm horrible with names, and I had forgotten what they were almost immediately. BUT I never forget a face!!) 

The Provo Temple. 

Right next to the house we stayed at in Washington, Utah!

The Musical Road, in Lancaster, CA. 

I had a video, but it won't play the audio. :( It's supposed to be the "William Tell Overture," also known as "The Lone Ranger" Theme Song. 

So, just a little over six months as a member, and eight months since the Elders knocked on my door, I have now been to SEVEN temples now! Gilbert, Los Angeles, Newport Beach, Redlands, St. George, Ogden, and Salt Lake. I can not believe it!!